It Takes Two
by lizziestar
Summary: Set during POA. Alyssa Carter is a fifteen year old witch from America. When her father dies, her mother decides to move the family to Britain, where she grew up. Alyssa starts her fifth year at Hogwarts and makes lots of new friends. Adventure awaits.
1. Chapter 1

**Okay, this is my Harry Potter fanfic. Yes, I am aware that I already posted it, but I deleted it. I wanted to fix it a little. Anyway, I fixed it and here it is. Time for my disclaimer. I do NOT own Harry Potter or any of it's characters. I only own this story line and any characters not in the books. I would like to thank Sonya Rivers for helping me come up with some characters. I tweaked them a bit, but they were mostly her. Keep in mind this fanfic is set during POA and is the story of Alyssa Carter. So, to all the Fred and George Weasley fans out there I dedicate to you this most magnificent and magical fanfic.**

It was an early morning in late August. The sun had barely risen over the horizon. It seemed like a typical morning. The residents of the village of Upper Flagley were all sleeping soundly in there beds. If someone had woken up early, walked downstairs into their kitchen, and looked through the window they'd be met with a surprising and extraordinary sight. A very odd and disfigured shape could be seen in the sky.

If they continued to stare, they'd see the shape- or rather, shapes- were getting clearer as they came closer. They'd soon be able to see two owls, a rather peculiar sight. (Two owls in broad daylight?) One was a screech owl, carrying a large parcel. The other was a great barn owl with what looked like a letter in its beak. They were both flying straight for 857 Lanchester Road, the home of Miss Eleanor Weller.

Not many people knew much about the woman except that she was fairly young and that she lived alone. Well, she had until recently anyway. About two weeks earlier, Miss Weller's sister and two nieces had moved in with her. No one quite knew why. At least, the Muggles didn't.

You see, Miss Weller, her sister, and the two girls were all witches. The Muggles (non magic folk) were blissfully unaware that there were many witches and wizards scattered among them. This was the way the magical community liked it. If they stayed hidden, they stayed safe. They knew the full story about the family.

Eleanor's older sister, Gwendolyn, had gone on holiday in America shortly after finishing school. There she had met Alexander Carter, a Muggle-born wizard, and they had gotten married. They had two daughters, Alyssa and Olivia, and had a very happy life. Unfortunately, Alexander had died of an illness a few months earlier. That was when Gwen had decided to take her two daughters and move back home with her sister.

The two owls were now approaching fifteen year old Alyssa's bedroom window. The barn owl tapped loudly on the window and a rather disgruntled Alyssa fell out of her bed with a loud thud at the noise.

"Ugh." she groaned as she slowly sat up and rubbed her sore head. Most of her long, light brown hair had escaped from the elastic she had used when she braided it the previous night. She rubbed her tired brown eyes and jumped with absolute delight at what she saw in the window.

"Amethyst!" she squealed excitedly as she scrambled to her feet. She quickly unlatched the window and shivered slightly as both owls flew in. The air outside was chilly.

The screech owl landed on Alyssa's nightstand after she dropped the large package on the bed. The barn owl waited for Alyssa to take the letter from its beak and then flew straight out the open window.

Alyssa closed the window, watched the owl sail away for a moment, and then inspected the letter in her hand. The outside of the envelope had her name and exact address scrawled on it in emerald green ink.

She thought she knew what this was. She turned the letter over. Sure enough, there was a purple wax seal bearing a coat of arms. There was a lion, an eagle, a badger, and a snake surrounding a large letter H. Just as Alyssa had thought, it was a letter from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Her mother and aunt had gone to Hogwarts as children and, now, so would she.

She carefully opened the letter and read what was written.

_Dear Miss Carter, The new school year will begin on September the first. The Hogwarts Express will leave from King's Cross Station, platform nine and three- quarters, at eleven o'clock. A list of your school books and supplies is enclosed. Sincerely, Professor M. McGonagall, Deputy Headmistress. P.S. You will be Sorted with the first years and will be accompanying them off the platform and into the school. _

Alyssa took out her list and read what she would need for the school year. She decided she would give this to her mother after breakfast. She then looked over at the bed where Amethyst had dropped her package. There was only one person this could be from.

She walked over to the bed and ripped off the brown paper quickly. She wondered what this could possibly be. She opened the box and squealed with delight at what she saw inside. It was some new Quidditch gear, Alyssa's favorite sport played on broomstick. A letter was also nestled inside and she recognized the handwriting.

The gift was a late birthday present from her best friend back home, Leslie Rahall. The letter was mostly apologizing for not sending the present earlier. Leslie said it was lucky Amethyst happened to drop in for a visit. Alyssa had been wondering why her owl had been gone for a week.

She smiled and opened her nightstand drawer. She pulled out an Owl Treat and handed it to Amethyst who happily ate it. She hooted delightedly and flew over to the dresser, resting on top. She tucked her head under her wing and began taking a much needed and deserved nap.

Alyssa laughed and took her hair out of the elastic. She brushed her wavy hair quickly and slipped out of her nightgown. She walked over to the closet and pulled out a green shirt, a pair of jeans, and her brown jacket. While she was getting dressed, she heard her mother and aunt rummaging around in the kitchen below.

Her stomach growled so she headed out of her room and down the stairs to get some warm, delicious breakfast.

"I just can't believe it." she heard her Aunt Ellie gasp. "It's impossible."

Her mother's voice came next. "Well, he's done it Ellie. It must be possible."

"What are you two talking about?" Alyssa asked as she made her way into the kitchen. Her aunt and mother were bent over the table, engrossed in something. She could smell the bacon and eggs cooking on the stove.

Her mother and aunt looked up at her. You could tell they were sisters. They both had beautiful, long, auburn hair and beautiful, warm, brown eyes.

"Nice to see you love." Gwen told her daughter, pulling up a chair with a flick of her wand.

Alyssa sat down and said, "You still haven't answered my question."

Eleanor and Gwendolyn exchanged uneasy looks. Ellie sighed and shoved a newspaper under her niece's nose.

Staring up from the newspaper was a crazy looking man. He was thrashing about in the picture. (In the wizarding world pictures moved.) He had dirty, matted, shoulder length hair and a gaunt, waxy face. Above his picture, in dark black letters, was a headline that read: Sirius Black Escapes Azkaban.

Alyssa looked up, confused. "Isn't Azkaban the wizards' prison?" The two women nodded solemnly. "And isn't it guarded by dementors?"

She was referring to the terrible, horrible creatures that fed on happiness. They made a person relive their most awful memories, making them feel hopeless.

Her mother and aunt nodded again. "No one knows how he escaped." Aunt Ellie explained. "It's never been done before."

"He's even on the Muggle news." her mother said. "I watched it last night."

Her mother and aunt were half-bloods, meaning they had one magical parent and one Muggle parent. That was why they had some Muggle conveniences.

"What did he do to get into Azkaban?" Alyssa inquired curiously. She looked back down at Black's frightening face. She figured he had been locked up for a good reason.

She looked back up and saw her mum and Aunt Ellie share a grave look. This definitely was not going to be a very good story.

Gwendolyn sighed. "You've heard of Harry Potter, right sweetie?" she asked her daughter.

Alyssa nodded. Of course she'd heard of Harry Potter. Who hadn't heard of him? He was the Boy Who Lived. He was famous, a legend, even back in America, and he was only a kid, younger than she was.

Gwen trudged on. "Well, Black was best friends with James Potter, Harry's father. The two were inseparable." She looked to her sister and then continued. "When James and his wife, Lily, went into hiding from He Who Must Not Be Named, he was their Secret Keeper."

"He betrayed them." Ellie supplied. "See, he had gone over to the dark side long before this. He fed information to You-Know-Who himself. Some say he was his right hand man."

Alyssa gasped. That was just plain awful. Why would someone do that? He had been their friend and he just handed them to their deaths.

"As you know, Lily and James were murdered and their house was blown to bits." Gwen went on. "Harry, who was only a baby, somehow survived and destroyed You-Know-Who."

"So, what happened to Black?" Alyssa asked. "How'd they catch him?"

Ellie sighed. "He fled, but was chased by Peter Pettigrew, another friend of James and Lily. He confronted Sirius. Well, Sirius took out him and about a dozen Muggles. He blew up the whole street. They found Peter's finger and arrested Sirius who was laughing."

The fifteen year old shuddered. Then, something dawned on her. "Aunt Ellie, you keep calling him by his first name." she noted. "Did you… know him or something?"

Eleanor hesitated for a moment and then slowly nodded her head. "We were in the same House at Hogwarts, but he was a year ahead of me." She snorted. "He was in Gryffindor. What a joke. The scum bag."

Gryffindor was a House for brave and chivalrous people. From the way it sounded, this guy was the exact opposite.

"I knew James and Lily too." Ellie continued. "They were good people. They didn't deserve what they got. If I see him, I'll kill him myself. To heck with the Ministry of Magic!"

Alyssa had never seen Aunt Ellie act this way before. She was normally a calm and perfectly reasonable woman.

She was about to ask what she meant by 'To heck with the Ministry of Magic', when she heard a pair of footsteps on the stairs.

Ellie flicked her wand lazily and, suddenly, the food was zooming through the air and landed gently on plates. She flicked her wand again and another chair appeared out of thin air.

"Morning Livy." Gwen said as the figure of her nine year old daughter appeared, yawning in the kitchen doorway.

Olivia mumbled incoherent words of greeting and plopped herself down in the empty chair.

Alyssa got her looks, except her eyes, from her father. However, Livy was the spitting image of her mother. She had the same auburn hair. The only difference was her blue eyes, the only thing she inherited from her father.

"Have some breakfast everyone." Ellie said in her normal, cheerful tone.

Everyone began eating their breakfast. Alyssa was half way finished when she remembered the letter she had gotten from Hogwarts.

"Mum." she said. Her mother looked up and she continued. "I got my Hogwarts letter this morning."

Gwen nodded. "We'll go to Diagon Alley after breakfast." She then turned to her sister. "Can you come Ellie?" she asked.

Eleanor shook her head. "I'd love to go Gwen, but I have to get to St. Mungo's." She worked as a Healer at St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries.

"How are we going to get to Diagon Alley Mum?" Olivia asked, waking up.

"Well, the same way I'm getting to work." Eleanor told her younger niece. "You're going to Floo to the Leaky Cauldron."

Alyssa's stomach churned at that thought. Of course they had to travel by Floo powder. She hated using Floo powder. In her opinion, it was the worst way to travel in the world.

She groaned in anguish. "Not Floo powder."


	2. Chapter 2

**Okay, I am so sorry that I haven't been able to update this sooner. I had writer's block, a bunch of stuff to do, other fanfictions to work on, and a baby niece to worry about. I can't say if I'll start updating this story frequently or not. I'd like to, but I might not be able to. Now, this chapter isn't really up to my standards for a Harry Potter fic. However, not all chapters are ever perfect. My next one should be loads better. So, here's Chapter 2. Thank you for sticking with me.**

Traveling by Floo powder was easy enough, in theory. One simply took a pinch of powder, threw it into lit fireplace, stepped in, and then clearly shouted the name of the place where they intended on going.

However, it was different in reality. It churned up your stomach, you got covered in soot, and you could very well end up in the wrong place if you weren't careful. It was a very tricky way to travel unless you did it often. Which Alyssa didn't.

"Mum?" Alyssa asked, unwillingly taking a pinch of the glittering powder. "Can't we just drive to the Leaky Cauldron instead?"

Her mother smiled gently, taking a pinch and handing the pot to Olivia, who also looked rather uncomfortable. "This'll be much quicker, dear." she said simply.

"Right." Ellie agreed, throwing her own powder into the fire, turning the flames green. "See you lot tonight." She stepped into the flames and shouted, "St. Mungo's!", disappearing quickly.

Gwendolyn nudged Alyssa forward as the flames changed back to orange. "You first, love." she said, encouragingly.

Alyssa sighed and tossed the powder into the fire, which turned emerald green once again. She stepped inside the fireplace, a warm sensation washing over her, and yelled, "The Leaky Cauldron!"

Suddenly, she was spinning very fast and felt terribly queasy. She quickly tucked in her elbows, waiting for everything around her to stop spinning.

Finally, she thrust out of the fireplace and fell onto a very dirty floor. She could people talking, but she didn't dare stand up until she was sure her stomach had settled. Even then, she didn't stand for a few more seconds, making sure she would be alright.

When she did stand up, she looked around the small pub. Her mother had told her it was very famous. Alyssa wasn't very impressed. It was tiny, dirty, and dark. There was also an awful smell that hung in the air. However, it did seem friendly.

Suddenly, Alyssa felt a push from behind. Livy had just stumbled out of the fireplace and bumped into her older sister. She looked around, also not very impressed with the place.

"This is the famous Leaky Cauldron?" she asked incredulously. Her round, blue eyes scanned the place. "Really?"

Alyssa shrugged her shoulders. "I s'pose so. I mean, we could have ended at the wrong place, but I doubt it since we're both here." She took her sister's hand and led her away from the fireplace.

"Where's Mum? Olivia wondered out loud.

As if in answer to her question, their mother appeared in the fireplace, stepping out gracefully like she had done this a dozen times before. She actually probably had.

"Good." she said, smiling at her daughters. "You both managed to get here all right."

Gwen led her girls to the bar and smiled at the bald, toothless bartender. "Hello, Tom." she said in greeting. "Bet you don't remember me."

The bartender, Tom, stared at her for a moment, his eyes widening in shock and disbelief. "Gwendolyn Weller? Is it really you?"

Her mother chuckled. "It's Gwendolyn Carter now, Tom."

"Well, I'll be." he said, in awe. "These your girls, then?" he asked, smiling kindly at the two of them.

Gwen nodded and placed a shoulder on each of her daughters as she introduced them. "This is Alyssa and the little one's Olivia."

Tom bowed deeply. "Well, they are both beautiful." He picked up a dirty glass and began to clean it. "So, what brings you here?"

Gwen smiled softly at her old friend. "Well, Alyssa's starting Hogwarts. Her father died and I decided to move the girls up here. We're living with my sister, Ellie."

Tom nodded. "I'm sure she'll do fine if she's anything like you." he said kindly as he winked at Alyssa.

Gwen's face tinged pink as she grinned. "Oh, Tom." she said. "I better be going. We've got a lot of things to buy and such little time to do the shopping."

"Good seeing you again, Gwendolyn." Tom called as the three witches walked out the back door and into a dingy alley.

Alyssa wondered how they were supposed to get into Diagon Alley from there. She had only gone once and that time they had Flooed straight into a shop.

She looked up and was about to ask her mother her question, when she noticed where there had once been a brick wall, there was now an archway leading right into Diagon Alley. This was beyond amazing.

"Okay." Gwen said, taking Olivia's hand so she wouldn't lose her. "We'll go get your books and you can go and get everything else." she told her eldest daughter. "We'll meet up at Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor later." She reached into her pocket and pulled out a drawstring bag. "There's some money. See you in a while." she said as she hurried off toward Flourish and Blott's.

Alyssa quickly walked off in the opposite direction, happy to be free to do as she pleased. It was a particularly beautiful late summer afternoon. The sun warmed her face, but there was a slight breeze so she kept her jacket on.

She passed Ollivander's, the wand shop, and thrust her hand into her jacket pocket. She curled her fingers around her own wand. Willow and unicorn hair. Nine inches. Her mother had insisted upon an Ollivander's wand.

"Won't find a better quality anywhere." she had said.

Alyssa smiled as she remembered getting it at eleven years old. It had taken a while for Mr. Ollivander to find the one suited for her. She must have tried a dozen before she found the one she was now clutching in her pocket.

She walked on and almost passed by Quality Quidditch Supplies, when something in the window caught her attention.

A large crowd had started to thin some and she could see the display. She walked over and gazed at the latest broomstick model, a Firebolt. It was beautiful- and expensive. No way she could afford that.

She sighed and turned around, smacking into someone. She blinked and heard the person's belongings fall to the ground. She hastily bent down to help gather the bags, most of which seemed to come from Zonko's Joke Shop.

"I am so sorry." she apologized. She grabbed the last bag and looked at the person. He was a cheerful looking boy with dreadlocks. He didn't seem to mind that she had just knocked all of his stuff out of his hands.

"'S' all right." he said, taking the bag from her and shoving something in it. He pointed to the display. "You looking at the Firebolt?" he asked.

She nodded, happy that he wasn't mad at her. "Yeah. Can't afford it though. It's really amazing. Bet it'd be fun to fly."

The boy nodded and then stood up. He held out his hand for Alyssa and then, when she took it, pulled her back on her feet as well. "Bloody brilliant." he said, still talking about the broom. "You play Quidditch?"

Alyssa nodded. "You bet. Uh, I'm Alyssa Carter by the way." She thought it would be polite to introduce herself.

The boy stuck out his hand. "Name's Lee Jordan." he said, shaking Alyssa's hand. "You go to Hogwarts? I don't think I've seen you around."

"Yeah." she told him. "I'm sort of a transfer from America. I'm in fifth year."

"Cool." Lee said. "You'll love it there."

"Oi! Lee!" someone called from up the road.

"I'm coming!" he shouted back, turning his head. He turned back to Alyssa. "Maybe I'll see you around Hogwarts."

"Maybe." Alyssa said, smiling. "It'll be nice to know someone."

He smiled and then waved a goodbye as he headed up the road to meet whoever was calling him.

When Alyssa could no longer see Lee, she turned around and headed towards the Apothecary to get some basic potions ingredients. Potions was not her best subject, but she was required to take it all the same.

In an hour, Alyssa was exhausted and weighed down with school supplies. She made her way over to the ice cream parlor to find her mother and sister eating outside with a couple of bags from the bookstore sitting on the ground next to them.

"Finally finished are you?" Gwen teased, handing her daughter a sundae. "You've been gone an awfully long time."

"Mum." Alyssa said. "I was just looking at the Firebolt. I ran into a kid from Hogwarts. Lee Jordan."

Her mother looked thoughtful. "Hmm." she mused, polishing off her ice cream. "I believe the surname sounds familiar. I can't quite place it."

Livy grinned. "Ooh. Looks like Alyssa has a boyfriend." she cooed disgustingly. Why were little sisters so bothersome?

Alyssa rolled her eyes as her mother said, "Livy, stop teasing your sister." and then gave her a small smile.

"Oh, Mum." Alyssa complained. "At the very most, I'll end up being friends with Lee." While she found him nice, she didn't find him particularly good looking.

After everyone had finished their ice creams, Gwen checked her watch. "Well, come on you two." she said, gathering a few bags and standing up. "We best get going. Alyssa still needs to pack."

Term didn't start for another week, but Alyssa knew her mother was right. The sooner she got packed, the better.

The three of them, loaded down with purchases, headed up the road and back toward the entryway to Diagon Alley.

Once they got back inside the Leaky Cauldron, Gwen bid Tom farewell, promising to come back to the pub for a quick visit as soon as she could.

They walked over to the fireplace, each taking a pinch of Floo powder from the pot on the mantle This time, Livy went first. She cried, "857 Lanchester Road, Upper Flagley!" and disappeared in a flash of green flames.

Next it was Alyssa's turn. Just as she was about to step into the fireplace, a rather large, ugly, ginger cat went streaking past her, giving her quite a turn. She hated cats.

Her mother chuckled softly. "Go on now, love." she coaxed. "It was just a large cat. Nothing to worry about."

"More like a small tiger." poor, disgruntled Alyssa muttered, stepping into the fireplace. She sighed and shouted, "857 Lanchester Road, Upper Flagley!"

This time, the Floo journey seemed to be much shorter. In no time at all, she stumbled out of her aunt's fireplace, dropped her bags on the floor, and dragged herself to the closest armchair.

She closed her eyes and listened to her mother step out of the fireplace and ask, "Who wants to help me with dinner?"

Alyssa, eyes still shut tight, declined. "I don't think I can stand without throwing up." One thing was for sure, Alyssa never wanted to travel by Floo powder again.


End file.
